If you don't have Mavis Beacon installed on your computer but you want to improve your typing skills, get a sense of your current skill level at Joshua Rennert's typing speed measurement page.

Click in the text area and the page will present a block of text and start a timer. Type it up (and correct any mistakes!) to get a speed in words per minute. My first try I did 93 words per minute (is that good?), but every time after that the observer effect kicked in and I was feeling all watched and nervous and couldn't match it. Let us know how many wpm your fingers can bang out, and be sure to check out reader suggestions for learning how to type. — Gina Trapani